5 Ways Yoga Can Make You Smile

The science is clear; smiling is great for you. When we smile is activates neural messaging which changes the chemical makeup of our brain, to make us both happier and healthier! Dopamine, serotonin and endorphins (basically all the good stuff) are released as soon as a smile flashes across our face. So in honour of World Smile Day, here’s our 5 ways that yoga can make you smile…

1. Feeling better in your body

We’ve said it before at Blossom Yoga Wear and we’re definitely going to end up saying it again...yoga is great for promoting a healthy relationship with your body. Through our practice we learn to listen to what our body is telling us and to tune in to it’s messages. Regardless of shape and size, we feel stronger through the asanas we perform. We see transformation that goes far beyond tightening our butt muscles. We can learn to accept our perceived imperfections and to appreciate the mini miracles that our body performs for us each and every single day.

2. Promoting inner stillness

It’s a jungle out there, and the peace and stillness we learn to cultivate through disciplined breath work and focused movement all helps us to keep our s**t together. The calmer and more collected we can be when it comes to all that life can throw at us, the better equipped we are to shrug off the heaviness and smile, smile, smile.

3. A sense of community

Whether you go along to a yoga class with friends, or by yourself, there’s no denying the welcoming sense of community you find that surrounds the yoga movement. Like minded people coming together to share and connect is all a part of that warm and fuzzy feeling we enjoy so much.

4. By helping us cry

Yoga is a powerful tool to stay in touch with your emotions, by bringing a deep connection between body and mind. Perhaps you feel the flood gates open after a strong hip opening sequence, or a rubbish day at work comes out through anger and frustration on the mat. Where it’s easier to escape negative emotions through distractions, like putting on the TV or opening a bottle of wine, yoga acts as a mirror to our feelings and offers a space to process. In a society where we often feel pressure to put on a happy face, being able to let it all out can lead us back to finding our smile a heck of a lot quicker than trying to cover it up.

5. Wise life lessons

The theory behind yoga, as well as just the practice itself, reminds us that life is made of good and bad, light and shade, joy and sadness. Even in the darker times we are encouraged to reflect that all is temporary and “this too shall pass”. So when we’re feeling stuck in sorrow or fear, the teachings of yoga shows us that the good times will always return!